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In line with previous directives on adapting to climate change, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has updated its policy on the matter “to help the nation prepare for and respond to the impacts of a changing climate,” the EPA said in a statement on June 30. “The policy commits the Agency to work with states, tribes, and local communities to increase their resilience to extreme weather events and prepare for the impacts of climate change.”

The policy is in line with President Barack Obama’s Climate Action Plan and Executive Order 13653 on Preparing the United States for the Impacts of Climate Change, the EPA said. This “calls on the federal government to strengthen the adaptive capacity of its programs and operations.”

The new policy updates the EPA policy first issued in June 2011, and directs other agencies and stakeholder parties to modernize EPA financial assistance program to encourage climate-resilient investments; provide information, tools, training and technical support for climate change preparedness and resilience; implement priority actions identified in EPA’s Climate Change Adaptation Plan and Implementation Plans; focus on the most vulnerable people and places; measure and evaluate performance of climate adaptation actions; continue EPA planning for climate change-related risk, and coordinate with other federal agencies.